


Can't Take a Hint

by orphan_account



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Bakery AU, F/M, Fluff, One Shot, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 07:49:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6071119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Someone's got a crush...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Can't Take a Hint

**Author's Note:**

> Y/N = Your Name. I'm pretty sure no one is really in character but ehh it's an AU sooo...
> 
> Oh and again I apologize for any potential mistakes, I edit these myself.

You shifted the paper grocery bag in your left arm as you wrestled with your keys in the other. It was always a hassle to open it with gloves on, let alone with one hand. You practically forced the door open as you walked in, taking in the smell of freshly risen dough. Mrs. Organa must’ve came in last night to prep some things. The bakery only sold baguettes when she wasn’t in the mood to deal with her husband Han, so they must’ve been arguing last night. It was a nice way to warn any of the other workers to not bring it up. They were a loving couple most days but they equally loved to butt heads from time to time.

You set your groceries down on the counter next to the stove that was hardly used, well by anyone except for you. You pulled off your coat, shaking off some of the snow before hanging it by the back door. It was the dead of winter in the city and soon enough people would be filing in to the bakery to warm up. You had moved to the city about two years ago for culinary school. This job as a baker kind of fell into your lap. You had been exploring the neighborhood after you moved in when you wandered into the shop. It was the middle of the day then, just before lunch, so hardly anyone was around. You ended up chatting a bit with Mrs. Organa, who insists to this day that you call her Leia, about what you were doing here and how you were new to the city. She told you that this was a relatively new addition to her and her husband’s list of businesses because she had always wanted to run her own bakery too. She had been a senator before that, which was pretty cool.

You came back the next day around the same time and she offered you a job despite your lack of experience. She liked you and “That was really all that mattered,” she had said at the time. It took you a few months to get into the swing of things but the hours fit into your school schedule and the pay was good enough, so you could hardly refuse the offer.

So now you were here, busying yourself with breakfast while you waited for everyone else to show up for work. Somehow you had all fallen into the routine, whoever would open the shop up would make breakfast for everyone else. Except, you opened up the shop most days because you lived in the neighborhood. It had really just started out as you being the first person here every day and wanting to make breakfast for yourself. Ben, Han and Leia’s son, would usually come in a bit later. He had taken to stealing bits of your breakfast, even with you smacking his hands with a spatula, so you learned to just make some for the both of you. It all snowballed from there and most days you just made food for everyone scheduled that day.

It gave you an excuse to practice recipes for school sometimes, so you didn’t mind much. You pulled the fruit out of the bag and after washing it you cut it down into bite-sized pieces. Everyone had their own preferences, so you’d just let them choose. Today, you had decided to make french toast with some of the shop’s leftover bread. You wandered out to the front and pulled out a loaf of brioche you had tucked away yesterday. It would be perfect for this, for sure. You snagged a few eggs from the fridge and the cinnamon and sugar on the way back and set up your small assembly line for french toast.

As the first piece hit the pan, the back door opened revealing a grumpy-looking Ben Solo. He was known for his temper but you always liked to tease him when he was annoyed. You hid your smile, it seemed that it had finally started to snow again after you got to work. His dark black hair, that you always wondered if it was dyed, was dusted with a light layer of snow. He was tall and looked a bit gangly at times but was still unconventionally attractive and a couple of years older than you. You had been sending him hints for about a year and a half now but he was either dense or chose to ignore you. Either way, you were still crushing on him pretty hard. Your friends were fed up with it at this point, so you hardly brought it up. They’d always tell you to just ask him but you were too shy to make a move on him. Plus, if you ended up being wrong, you didn’t want to make things weird at work.

He shook out his coat by the door and was mumbling something about the stupid fucking snow. “Morning, Sunshine,” you laughed. “Bite me, Y/N,” he snapped back. You gave an amused snort and went back to your business. “Will do, Ben Solo.”

You deftly flipped the toast over in the pan without a spatula, something they had drilled into you at school. You dipped the next piece of bread in the egg mixture and let it soak for a bit while the other one finished cooking. “How many people are coming in today?,” you asked without looking at him. You heard him washing his hands as he spoke, “You, me, my mom, Phasma, and _General Shitlord_. So five, probably. Unless my parents made up already then maybe six.” He walked up behind you, rubbing his hands with a towel, still a bit grumpy-looking from the snow.

“I’ll make 6 portions just in case. I can always eat the other one if your dad doesn’t show up,” you hummed contentedly. “Maybe I’ll share it with Phasma or General Shitlord, who knows.”

You placed the first piece of toast off to the side and smacked a hand that showed up in your peripheral vision. “Ow, what the heck?” he rubbed the back of his hand with a fake hurt expression. “Oh shush, you should honestly be expecting it by now, Ben Solo. I do not tolerate breakfast thieves.” You smiled to yourself and fake smacked at him again as he popped a strawberry into his mouth. He gave a haha-I-won kind of smile and licked juice off of his bottom lip. You turned back to the french toast, blushing, while putting in another piece of toast. “Alright, Solo. Enough out of you. Go pull down the chairs in the front room already.” Ben chuckled and walked off while you cooked.

 

By the time you were done making breakfast, a few more of your co-workers had filed into the bakery. Hux put out his cigarette and stomped on it before coming in. He was a tall, ginger-haired man, probably a few inches shorter than Ben. He went to the same University as Ben but he was studying journalism, you didn’t know why. You always liked to remind him that running his own blog would make more sense than going to school for it. He eventually did start his own blog as well but would never say that to you. He mostly stuck to the front, running the register and taking orders to people. Phasma arrived shortly after him, covered in snow as well. She was a quiet person who was just as tall as Ben, an Amazonian of a woman, and she worked as a personal trainer when she wasn’t here at the bakery. She had offered to train you a few times for free but you declined because of school. Both of them knew not to pick at your cooking or else face your spatula’d wrath. Mrs. Organa shuffled in a few minutes later as you all were setting up the food on one of the work counters. After taking off her coat, she sighed contentedly and pulled up a stool as well.

You piled strawberries, maple syrup, and freshly whipped cream onto your two pieces of french toast. The others did the same with their respective preferences and you all ate in a comfortable silence. That is, until the back door opened up and everyone except for Leia tensed up. You looked up as Han took off his coat by the door and hung it up by Leia’s. He strode over to her and placed a warm kiss on her cheek, making you all relax immediately.

“Checking on the new building?,” Leia asked. The bakery was getting busier and busier lately so they had decided to move a block over to a bigger space. “Yeah,” Han huffed, “Looks like we’re about there with the renovating.” He sat down at the table and pulled away the last two pieces of toast as you looked on dejectedly, you had really wanted to eat those too. Ben held back a snort and you glared at him as you bit into a cream-covered strawberry. He looked away quickly and turned his attention to Hux. “So what’re you doing for graduation?” he asked him. Hux scoffed, “I’m gonna skip. My parents wouldn’t be able to make it up here anyway so why bother?”

Leia looked a bit sad at that and said, “Well you better be going, Ben. I want to see my son walk across that stage after all that waffling you’ve been doing at school.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he replied.

“What about you, Y/N? Aren’t you almost done with culinary school now?” Phasma asked and you tensed up. “Yeah, I guess I am, huh? I don’t know, really. I mean there’s a ceremony but my parents are across the country and I don’t know if I feel like going on my own.” Ben looked like he was about to say something. “Well I would go,” Leia spoke first “I could drag these two with me for sure” She pointed at Han and Ben with her fork. “After all the work you’ve done for us we’d be happy to support you there.”

“That’s sweet Mrs.--” she gave you a look “I mean, Leia, but you really don’t have to. It seems like a waste of money, really.” you said with a shy smile. “Besides, I'm not really one to get dressed up. I prefer being covered in flour any day,” you laughed, stuffing your last bit of food into your mouth. “Nonsense, you're going and I’ll cover it,” she said matter-of-factly as she finished up her food. You opened your mouth to protest but she gave you a look that would send anyone running so you shut up and nodded instead.

You let out a short defeated laugh and made a move to grab everyone’s plates except Han’s but a large hand grabbed your wrist gently, igniting butterflies in your stomach. You looked up and saw Ben smiling at you, “You cook, we clean.” You smiled nervously and set the plates down, his hand lingering on your wrist for a beat too long before he pulled away. He quickly gathered up everything and took it to the sinks in the back. You blushed a bit, smiling to yourself before heading into the back to pull out the racks of baguettes. You could get them in the oven while everyone else worked on cleaning up.  


 

Closer to opening time, you were laying out sheets of dough for danishes when Han came up beside you, leaning back against the counter. “So, kid, what are you doing _after_ school?” he said with a quirk of his brow. “I, uhh, well I don't know exactly. I like it here but it's really only enough money to stay where I am. My, uh, instructor offered a few of us positions at his restaurant downtown and I might take it,” you confessed as you began to carefully divide up the dough. He smirked at you then looked away slightly, it would've made you blush if he were your age. “Well, me and Leia were wondering if you wanted to help us here, actually. We still own this building too and we were thinking about turning it into a restaurant since the equipment is still here. Ben would be running the business side and you would be head chef.”

You froze in disbelief at his proposition. Your own restaurant? That was something you only dreamed of doing, years from now at that! But here they were, ready to make you head chef. “I- I- I- don't know what to say, sir,” you stuttered out. He laughed and clapped a hand on your shoulder reassuringly, “Well think on it, kid. I'll let Leia know that I told you.” He walked off to the front to pull up the shutters. There was a couple lingering about out front waiting for their morning coffee.

During your shared break, you sat outside in the alley behind the bakery with Phasma as you told her the news. You four had set up a picnic table outside as a break area because there was little to no room inside for it. “So have you decided yet?,” she asked. You sighed and looked out towards the street. “I… I don’t know yet. I mean, I love it here, sure. But am I limiting myself by just sticking it out here? Everyone else is going off and learning more or going off to Europe to train under someone else.” Phasma laughed and picked at the food she was holding,”I don’t know. I feel like running your own restaurant would definitely be learning a lot. Plus, you’d have Ben to rely on.”

“Yeah but--”

“But what, Y/N? This is the opportunity of a lifetime for you. If someone offered me my own gym or training business, I’d take it in a heartbeat. What’s got you so riled up about this? Just because you’re head chef doesn’t mean you can’t travel.” she said, stabbing a few grape tomatoes onto her fork.

You sighed in defeat and rested your head in your hands, elbows resting on the table. “It’s just-- I’d have to get over my crush on Ben if I was going to do it. I don’t think I’d be able to handle working with him on my own,” you admitted. She scoffed and you continued, “Like, hear me out okay? I can’t have feelings for a business partner if they aren’t going to reciprocate, you know? I’ve been giving him hints for how long now and nothing’s happened!”

The woman laughed with food in her mouth. She covered her mouth as she spoke, “Really? That’s why you’re nervous? You two have been eye-fucking each other at work for months now and you don’t think he’s interested? Just fucking ask him already!”

You heard the back door open and you looked up in fear as Ben and Hux stepped out into the alley. “Fucking ask who what?” Hux asked as he pulled out his pack of cigarettes. He tapped one out and lit it while looking between us. You felt your cheeks flush with red as you stood quickly, “N-nothing, I was just wanting to ask my instructor something I’ve been wondering about graduation.” You rushed off inside unceremoniously and the three shared a look as the door shut.

“What was that about?,” Ben asked Phasma as he pulled out his lunch. He sat down at the spot you had just vacated on the bench. Hux took a seat on the other side after brushing off some of the leftover snow. Phasma laughed and gave Hux a knowing look. He rolled his eyes in response and kept silent. Noting the exchange, Ben looked a little annoyed but Phasma interrupted that thought. “So what are you parents doing with this place once the move is over?”

Ben swallowed some food and nodded, “They’re sort of giving it to me, I guess. I did end up with a business degree at this point and I’ve been working here since it opened so running a restaurant wouldn’t be that hard. I could still be in my band here if I did that.”

“You’re not exactly the best cook, Kylo, frontman of the Knights of Ren.” Hux laughed between puffs.

“Yeah, yeah. I was thinking of asking uh Y/N to do that instead, since she’s just getting out of school.” he said with a tinge of red on his cheeks. Hux and Phasma shared a laugh.

“You know, your dad already kind of beat you to the punch there, Ben.” Phasma pointed out.

“What? When?” Ben looked flabbergasted.

“He asked her this morning, apparently. But she hasn’t decided yet. She has a position lined up for her at that place downtown,” she said as she chewed her last bits of salad. “That and some… other things that have been bothering her have kept her from deciding.” Hux laughed at that.

Ben’s brows knitted into a concerned look. “Does she have a problem with me?”

They both shared another laugh and a look that said, _Do you talk first? Do I talk first?_ Hux put out his cigarette on the table and turned towards Ben. “Look, dude, you two have been mentally fucking each other for months now and you still don’t get it? She’s worried because she has feelings for you and you haven’t made a move. Even I’d be worried about being business partners in a situation like that.”

Ben’s jaw dropped in disbelief and Phasma touched his chin to shut it. “We’ve been telling you for months to just ask her out.”

“I- I know but I just haven’t found the right time to do it.” Hux got up from the table and sighed. “Well, better find it soon before you lose your head chef _and potential girlfriend_.”

 

 

Three weeks had passed and you still hadn’t decided whether or not you would take the position at Ben’s new restaurant. You two hadn’t talked about it much at all, so you couldn’t even tell if he wanted you to do it or not. Much to the chagrin of everyone else, there was plenty of obvious flirting between the two of you and yet neither of you made of move on that front either.

You were in your apartment getting ready for your graduation ceremony. You had picked out a rich, black dress that had velvet appliqué etched all over it in swirls and hugged you in all the right places. You wore deep red tights to keep from freezing your legs off, along with some black leather booties. Your chef’s outfit and hat tucked away in a bag by the door waiting for after the actual ceremony. Your school wasn’t exactly traditional so the graduation had to be a little weird too. Basically, there was an actual, cross the stage and diploma part of the ceremony and afterwards the graduates would make tons of food for the guests. Your class had been prepping for it for the better half of the day and you only just got back to change.

You were working on your hair when a knock came from the front door. Must be Phasma, she lived in the same building as you. Your heels clicked across the floor as you made your way to the front door. You were taken aback as you opened the door, only to be greeted by a huge bouquet of your favorite flowers. “Whu--??,” you said confused as they were bent down and you were greeted by a wonderfully cleaned up Ben Solo. His raven locks looked slightly more purposefully disheveled and he was wearing a button-up shirt and slacks, both black.

He smiled at your awestruck face and made his way inside as he handed you the flowers. You laughed slightly and made your way to the kitchen to put them in a vase. “Are your parents coming up?,” you asked him from the other room. He appeared in the doorway of the kitchen and smiled a bit, looking you up and down, “Nice place you got here. And you look beautiful.” You laughed slightly as you filled the vase up with water, “Uh, thanks. You didn't answer my question, Ben Solo.” He ran his fingers through his hair nervously and looked at the flowers you were fluffing. “No, I came on my own. They said they'd meet us there.”

You felt your heart jump into your throat. “Oh, uhh, weird, you're a bit early then. It's not for another two hours that we even have to leave.” You slid past him in the doorway to put the flowers down on the coffee table. You turned around and jumped a bit, realizing he was right behind you. _How did someone so tall move so quietly?_ He gave a warm smile and sighed quietly, “I just really wanted to see you.”

You turned several different shades of scarlet and looked away, hoping he wouldn't notice. He snaked his arms around your waist, gently resting on your lower back while pulling you closer to him. You hugged him lightly, unsure of this interaction and where to put your hands. A sigh reverberated from his chest as you looked up when he hadn't let go yet. He had an awkward look on his face that concerned you.

“Ben?,” you questioned him with a look of confusion. He let go and backed away from you slightly.

“Y/N… I have a confession to make,” he said looking away. “I was told that I was being a bit of an idiot for, well, the past few months at least and I wanted to apologize.” You quirked your head to the side unknowingly and he continued, “I’ve, uh, I’ve liked you for a while now, Y/N. I just didn’t have to courage to say anything. Hux and Phasma told me so many times to just do it, so here I am.” He huffed out a laugh and stuck his hands out to the side slightly, looking defeated.

You stood stock still as you took it all in, it was the moment you’d been waiting for for months and you had no words. “I, uh, I- UM EXCUSE ME FOR A MOMENT,” your voice high in your throat as you scampered off to your room, nearly tripping in the process. All of your senses were firing off at once and your heart was pounding in your chest. You could barely believe it but here he was, BEN SOLO, in your apartment telling you that he liked _you_. All of your thoughts were screaming from the high heavens, so you tried to calm yourself by listing the steps out loud like you did with recipes.

“Okay, okay. Collect yourself, go back out there, tell him how you feel, _THAT YOU LIKE HIM_ , probably _die inside_ , then maybe kiss him?? I don’t know!,” you said in a harsh whisper as you paced around your bedroom. You weren’t paying attention as the door pushed open and Ben slipped inside, just watching you pace back and forth. “I mean, _I know_ I like him but how do I say it without looking like a _total weirdo!_ I already **_ran away_ ** _from him for fuck’s sake!”_ You huffed, turning your back to the door to grab your phone from the nightstand.

“Okay, Y/N, go out there, tell him you like him too and go to your stupid graduation ceremony so _everyone_ can make fun of you for waiting this long,”  pumping yourself up. You whipped around, turning on your heel as you rammed face-first into Ben’s chest. You felt the rumble in his chest as he laughed and wrapped his arms around you again. “I mean, we could probably go without the dying inside but I can definitely go for the liking me back and maybe kissing?” He had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face as you buried your face in his chest, embarrassed beyond belief.

“Hey there,” he cooed, trying to pull your face away from his chest so he could look at you. “It’s okay, I mean, you’re not the only one embarrassed here,” he laughed. You slowly met his gaze and pressed your hands to his chest, realizing that both his ears and cheeks were bright red. You sighed and smiled, “We’re both idiots, huh?” He laughed in response, “According to everyone else, yeah.” You shifted your arms and let them rest around his neck, playing with the hair at the base of his neck like you’ve always wanted to do. You tensed up again as he leaned down pressing his plush lips to yours. You warmed up to the sensation quickly and kissed him back. It was tentative at first as you got to know each other but you were growing impatient. You had months of nervous flirting to catch up for so you only felt like rushing things. You ran your tongue across his bottom lip and he smiled against your mouth before pulling away.

He walked you both back until the back of your knees hit your bed. His large hands lifted you up before unceremoniously dropping you on the bed with your head hitting the pillows. You laughed and sat up, reaching out to pull on his collar. You pulled him down for another kiss as he crawled on top of you. His arms rested on either side of your head as you held him between your thighs. Your lower regions felt flush and warm as your tongue again asked for entrance and this time he allowed it.

He rested his hand on your cheek as you both tasted each other fully.

You both kept this up for a while just fervently kissing each other. Neither wanted to bother coming up for air even if your lungs screamed for it. You locked your legs around his hips and pulled him closer, feeling his hard length press against you. He groaned into your mouth and you bit his bottom lip in kind as he pulled away. You both were gasping for air as you looked into each other’s eyes.

“Are you sure you wanna do this?” He huffed, still hard and twitching against you. You looked over at the time, another hour and a half before the ceremony. You smiled lustfully and turned your attention back to him. “Ben Solo, I've been waiting a year and half for this. I think I'm more than ready.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed! Definitely inspired by a few different stories here on Ao3. :p I've never written actual smut before sooo


End file.
